BENNETTITES. 135 



Carruthers' genus. The structure of the petiole bases and the 

 ramenta-like scales has been fully described by Carruthers and 

 others. In the axils of some of the petiole bases which surround 

 the woody axis of the stem, there occur the lateral branches 

 which constitute the most important and interesting feature of 

 the genus. "These organs," writes Carruthers, "are not 

 properly buds, for although they do not appear to have pushed 

 themselves beyond the surfaces of the permanent bases of the 

 leaves, they are fully developed organs, and differ from the 

 secondary axes of Mantellia, which are generally broken off 

 beyond the surfaces of the permanent bases of the petioles, and 

 show there a woody cylinder agreeing in structure with the 

 principal axis of the plant. The secondary axis consists of a 

 very short and slender stem, bearing a number of simple linear 

 acuminate leaves. These are the only foliar organs hitherto 

 found connected with these fossils." 1 Each of the axillary 

 branches terminates in a subpyriform enlargement, bearing seeds ; 

 this terminal portion with its seeds are fully described and 

 illustrated by Carruthers and Solms-Laubach. The former 

 author, in summing up the affinities of the genus, expresses 

 the opinion that "it must be considered to hold the same 

 relation to the other Cycadece, that Taxus, with its succulent, 

 cup-shaped pericarp does to the cone-bearing Conifer ce." ~ 



In his Einleitung in die Palaophytologie Graf Solms 

 confirms many of the characteristics of Bennettites as described 

 by Carruthers, and by a careful examination of the English 

 material he is able to settle certain doubtful points, and to carry 

 a stage further our knowledge of this interesting type. 3 A 

 more detailed account was afterwards published by Solms in 

 the Botanische Zeitungf and the article subsequently appeared 

 in English in the fifth volume of the Annals of Botany? 

 Without entering at length into a histological description of 

 Bennettites, we may call attention to some of the more striking 

 and characteristic features. The structure and course of the 



1 Carruthers, loc. cit. p. 697. 



2 Ibid. p. 698. 



3 Solms-Laubach (A.), p. 94. 



4 Ibid. (1). 



5 Ibid. (2). 



